The ballroom at the Conservative Political Action Conference may be filled with big names and boisterous crowds, but it’s in the small breakout rooms where activists and leaders are plotting how to undo what the Obama administration has done.

Unbeknown to California officials, oil producers in Kern County have been disposing of chemical-laden wastewater in hundreds of unlined trenches in the ground without proper permits, according to an inventory that regional water officials completed this week.

Koda, the 10-year-old male polar bear at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, emerges from a cubbyhole atop the 6,000-square-foot enclosure he shares with 14-year-old Kobe. He steps out to a nearby ledge, his head bobbing and swinging from side to side. He then backs into the cubbyhole, head still...

On a summer day in 1885, three Hawaiian princes surfed at the mouth of the San Lorenzo River on crudely constructed boards made from coastal redwoods, bringing the sport to the North American mainland.

Rajendra Pachauri, who supervised work on the two most detailed studies of climate change ever completed, stepped down as head of the United Nations panel studying the science after allegations he sexually harassed a colleague.

David Lightman

A vote on military action is the most wrenching, most profound decision a member of Congress can make, and thats why Tom Carper was glad the minister talked about the Syrian crisis in church. | 09/04/13 14:47:45 By - By David Lightman

A highly skeptical Sen. Rand Paul on Tuesday sharply criticized President Barack Obama’s bid to launch military strikes against Syria, saying the mission’s purpose remained murky and uncertain. | 09/03/13 19:51:01 By - By David Lightman

President Barack Obama said Saturday he will ask Congress to approve military strikes against Syria’s government, a risky step likely to delay action for at least 10 days that could signal broad popular support but also could end in rejection by the legislative branch. | 08/31/13 17:17:59 By - By David Lightman, William Douglas and Anita Kumar

Any effort by President Barack Obama to launch military action against the Syrian regime faces growing resistance on Capitol Hill, as increasing numbers of lawmakers from both parties insist on having a say. | 08/28/13 18:57:08 By - By David Lightman and William Douglas

The battle for Congress wont fully engage until next year, but it sure looks like election season now as political activity explodes this summer at Americas county fairs, town halls and campaign fundraisers. From Alaska to West Virginia, whats happening around the country as lawmakers spend a month back home might shape the 2014 political map. | 08/14/13 14:47:51 By - By David Lightman

Had enough of Hillary Clinton? Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus has. He sent biting letters Monday to network executives at NBC and CNN, asking them to drop their planned projects – a mini-series and a documentary, respectively – about the will-she-or-won’t-she 2016 Democratic presidential contender. Such programs, he charged, would be a "thinly veiled attempt at putting a thumb on the scales of the 2016 presidential election." | 08/05/13 17:40:06 By - By David Lightman

The closing of U.S. embassies in 21 predominantly Muslim countries and a broad caution about travel during August that the State Department issued on Friday touched off debate Sunday over the National Security Agencys sweeping data collection programs. | 08/04/13 17:48:53 By - By Ali Watkins, David Lightman and Adam Baron

The Senates No. 2 Democrat on Friday joined the growing push in Congress against the National Security Agencys sweeping collection of cellphone records, announcing that the Senate Appropriations Committee had approved a measure that would require the agency to make public declarations about the once-secret program. | 08/02/13 20:16:27 By - By Ali Watkins and David Lightman

The Republican-run House of Representatives voted 232-185 Friday to bar the besieged Internal Revenue Service from enforcing or implementing the new health care law, but the effort was largely a political exercise. | 08/02/13 17:09:10 By - By David Lightman and Ben Kamisar

Congress sophisticated message machines roar into action this weekend, as lawmakers head home eager to mobilize constituents and gain momentum for budget and immigration battles to come. Chances are, their efforts will sputter. | 08/02/13 14:30:04 By - By David Lightman